1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to electric guitars, and in particular, electrical guitars which incorporate a tremolo system, which includes a tremolo bar, which selectively, temporarily acts on the guitar strings to allow the musician to achieve a descending or ascending note. Applicant's apparatus and method allows a musician to selective and continuously maintain, adjust or correct the tension of the guitar strings while performing or practicing with a tremolo system by being able to utilize the tuning tensioners at the headstock of the guitar neck
2. Description of the Prior Art
Electric guitars are very popular and a variety of electric apparatus have been developed which allow for the sound modification of electric guitars. This allows musicians to create sounds that were previously obtainable only in recording studios or through the use of very expensive sound equipment.
On a typical guitar, the strings, usually six in number, are tensioned between the bridge of the guitar, which is normally positioned on the rear end of the guitar body, and the tuning tensioners and take up posts, or tuning machines as they are sometimes referred to, positioned on the headstock at the end of the neck of the guitar. In this form of guitar, the musician would adjust the tensioners to achieve the desired tension of a particular string.
A tremolo system was further introduced to electric guitars, which allows the musician to selectively achieve descending notes or ascending notes as desired by either pressing downwardly on the tremolo bar or pulling upwardly on the tremolo bar from the tremolo bars neutral position.
In essence, the tremolo system replaces the bridge of the guitar positioned at the rear end of the guitar body. The strings are attached to a locking saddle in the bridge of a tremolo system, which in turn is secured to a tensioning helical spring positioned within the guitar body. The movement of the tremolo bar affects the tensioning of the six guitar strings.
The early tremolo systems suffered from the fact that the use of the tremolo bar, more often than not, would affect the tuning of the strings. The early tremolo systems used what is referred to in the trade as a nut. It was essentially a transverse bar at the end of the neck of the guitar having six spaced apart grooves there through accommodating one each of the strings of the guitar, which after passing through the grooves of the nut, where then redirected to the tuning tensioners and posts, or tuning machines. All guitars, whether having a tremolo system, utilize a nut that establishes the upper point of intonation of the guitar, the lower point of intonation being the bridge or tremolo bridge. Activation of the tremolo bar in the early systems would either tension or release tension on the strings to achieve the desired sound, but the return of the tremolo bar to its neutral position did not always insure that the actual guitar strings would return to their desired, preset prior tension.
Over the years a locking system was devised to address this problem. It is referred to in the trade as a double locking tremolo system. In it, the guitar strings are mechanically clamped at both points of intonation, that is at the headstock where the nut is positioned and at the bridge of the tremolo bar in a locking saddle.
The drawback to this system was that the strings on the nut proximate the headstock of the guitar locked the strings in position and disallowed the musician the ability to adjust tension using the tuning tensioners or tuning machines on the headstock. The system did include an adjustment means on the locking saddle of the bridge at the base of the tremolo system, however, the adjustment using this intonation position was very minor and did not allow the musician the range or travel for correction of the tension. The only recourse was to loosen and then retighten the clamps on the locking nut to allow the musician to use the tuning tensioners or tuning machines on the headstock. This is something not easily accomplished during a performance or practice or tuning.
Applicant has developed an apparatus and system which allows the musician to adjust the tension on the guitar strings independently and while performing without resorting to tools to loosen and retighten clamps, etc. It is now locking yet allows excess use of the tremolo system without going out of tune.